Psychiatrists discuss trauma against backdrop of Peshawar incident

Karachi
In context to real and perceived threat and fear caused by the Peshawar school carnage that left a very disturbing memory for all of us, Karwan-e-Hayat held a two-hour workshop and interactive session on trauma and post-trauma stress disorder (PTSD) especially in children on Saturday.
The target audience of the workshop was the school administrations and teachers.
Dr Ajmal Kazmi, senior consultant psychiatrist at the Karwan-e-Hayat, gave an elaborate presentation on what trauma meant, the symptoms of trauma and how children with PTSD can be helped.
The presentation was followed by an interactive session with Dr Nusrat Baloch, a senior psychiatrist in the United Kingdom who provides voluntary services at the Karwan-e-Hayat.
The psychiatrists touched upon some very pertinent points regarding PTSD in children. Dr Ajmal Kazmi elaborated upon the point that it was very important to observe children as to how they were behaving and how they were responding to situations.
He pointed out that there could turn in a sense of complacency in children as they would seem to be functioning normally but they would be showing signs of PTSD.
Schools were particularly faced with a difficult situation of providing safety to the students at their institutions. Schools need to be more involved with the children especially at this critical phase of a very disturbing memory of the Peshawar attacks.
School children need to be supported and handled through the emotional challenges that they will encounter as a result of the traumatic event.
According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, a traumatic event is a sudden and unexpected occurrence that causes intense fear and may involve a threat of physical harm or actual physical harm.
A traumatic experience may have a profound effect on the physical and mental health, and development of the student.
How students take trauma depends on their age and level of development.
By understanding how students experience traumatic events and how they express their lingering distress over the experience, school teachers can better respond and help them through this challenging time.
Dr Nusrat Baloch informed the audience about the various reactions in children. One of them was conduct disorder in children, or oppositional defiance disorder in which children would take out anger by defying authority. They may also be in dissociative state by blanking out negative memories or going into amnesia-like state.
They may also go in a state of denial, guilt etc. The acceptance phase was actually closure to the suffering.
The psychiatrists advised that school administrations and teachers should make children talk about trauma. They need constant realistic reassurance at a point of distress.
The interactive session ended with a resolve that not only school children but adults in our society also needed understanding of dealing with PTSD, and that it was a very relevant issue in our lives today.